Chiefs Hosting 2021 Breakout Player for Free-Agent Meeting

The Kansas City Chiefs entered the NFL offseason with a good portion of their fan base hoping for defensive improvements. Offense was never in question for the Chiefs in 2021, but defensive shortcomings led to a lot of frustrating moments, including their downfall in the playoffs.

Although the Chiefs haven't improved their defense that much yet this offseason, fans should be excited by the latest free agency rumors. According to ESPN insider Field Yates, Kansas City is now being linked to a certain 2021 breakout defender.

Chiefs Free Agency

Fields reported Thursday evening that the Chiefs will host defensive end Arden Key for a visit on Friday. The former 2018 third-round pick was viewed as a bust before breaking out in 2021 as a member of the San Francisco 49ers.

Key finished last season with new career highs when it comes to sacks (6.5) and quarterback hits (17) despite not starting in any of his 17 games played. He also had 22 tackles, 19 pressures and a broken-up pass while playing just 35% of the 49ers' defensive snaps.

Adding Key would help a Chiefs pass rush that mustered only 31.0 sacks last season — fourth worst in the NFL. Considering how defensive tackle Chris Jones (9.0) was the only Kansas City player to finish with more than 5.0 sacks, the need for someone of Key's caliber couldn't be any more evident.

The Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders and Denver Broncos each boast one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, so having a reliable pass rush is a must if the Chiefs want to remain competitive in their division.

Despite a few remaining holes that need to be filled, FanDuel Sportsbook is still favoring the Chiefs to win the AFC West Division at +155 odds.

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. The views expressed in his articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.